[Ham-Computers] RE: Wireless

Tue Apr 24 02:29:48 EDT 2007

Thanks, Aaron.  Useful information as usual.  I'm ordering a PCMCIA 
card wireless adapter, and will give it a try later this week. USB 
adapters looked more awkward to connect to my laptop, and I don't 
have USB 2.0.  After info from you and Jeff, I'm ready to see what happens.
Jim

At 11:19 AM 4/23/2007, you wrote:
>Jim,
>
>Wireless isn't that difficult, but it wasn't made very user friendly 
>either!  The first thing you'll need to get is a wireless adapter - 
>PC Card based adapters are great for laptops and USB based adapters 
>are more convenient (but possible more fragile due to connector flex).
>
>Once you have the adapter, you'll install the drivers and the 
>"wireless client" (the software that controls the adapter).  Once 
>installed and running, the "client" software will search the area 
>for publicly advertised "access points" (AP's).  If found, it should 
>show you a list of these AP's.  At this point, it's up to you to 
>decide what AP you should connect to.  Be aware that you should only 
>connect to AP's you have permission to connect to - it may be 
>illegal to do otherwise (check local laws).
>
>More details:
>AP's can be "open" or "secured" (aka "closed", "private", or 
>"encrypted").  "Open" means that nothing special is required to 
>connect to it - all you need to do is tell your wireless "client" to 
>connect to the AP.  Once connected to the AP, you should be able to 
>connect to the internet (as long as that AP is connected in some way 
>to the internet).  However, "Open" also means that all data 
>traveling from your computer to the AP is in "plain-text" - don't do 
>anything you might consider confidential (such as enter a CC number) 
>unless some other way of encryption is used.  For example, if using 
>IE or Firefox, when visiting a "secure" website, you'll see a "lock" 
>on the screen.  In this case IE/Firefox is encrypting the data - but 
>be safe anyway...don't do anything unless you feel/know it's safe.
>
>Some places, however, may require you to pass an additional 
>"tollgate" in order to connect to the internet.  For example, I 
>connect my laptop to the "open" wireless network available in a 
>Hotel.  The connection works fine and I can see everything available 
>on the Hotel's public network (front desk, room service, guest 
>services, etc).  However, in order to get to the internet, I need to 
>go through the Hotel's internet gateway which costs $x.xx per 
>hour/day/whatever - this is the tollgate.  In some places, the 
>tollgate is the first thing you see when you connect to their 
>network and you can't do anything else until you agree to the fees 
>(hence the reference to the name "tollgate" - can't get through 
>without paying).
>
>A "secured" AP is one that requires to you know the "passphrase" or 
>"key" in order to connect.  Without this "key", your wireless 
>adapter won't even connect to the AP.  For example, the Hotel may 
>have a sign at the front desk that has the "wireless key for the 
>day".  This is the key you'll use to connect to the Hotel's wireless 
>network.  Some hotels will require you to call from your room to get 
>the access key, just to make sure you're a registered guest.  Once 
>you're on the hotel's network, you may or may not be required to 
>pass through an additional tollgate.  Many do - you just need to 
>enter your name (as entered when you checked in), room number, and 
>agree to the terms of service - they basically want a record of 
>who's using the network (incase you do something illegal).
>
>OK, on to things a bit more complicated.  When comes to "secure" 
>AP's, the "security" is due to encryption of the data between the AP 
>and your computer.  There are several forms of encryption currently 
>used.  The oldest and most common is WEP (Wired Equivalent 
>Privacy).  The encryption keys used with WEP are either 64-bit or 
>128-bit long.  In reality, it doesn't matter if you use 64-bit or 
>128-bit WEP encryption as the WEP protocol was flawed right at the 
>start and a determined hacker can break the code in under 4 
>hours.  In essence, WEP is used as a way to prevent unauthorized use 
>of an AP, but don't rely on it to keep anything "secure".
>
>WPA (WiFi Protected Access) is the successor to WEP and is becomming 
>more common.  At this point, WPA is pretty secure unless the AP is 
>not properly configured.  With WPA, you use a "passphrase" to 
>connect to the AP - this "passphrase" is entered when you attempt to 
>attach to the AP via your wireless "client".  As secure as WPA is, 
>WPA2 and WPA-Enterprise are also available, but you probably won't 
>run into these as they're not very common yet.  For reference, the 
>original WPA is also known as "WPA-Personal".
>
>So what to do when you get to a wireless "hotspot"?  First, find out 
>if the hotspot is "open" or "secured".  If "Open", then use your 
>wireless "client" to connect to the hotspot AP.  If it is "secured", 
>you'll first need to find the "key" or "passphrase" in order to 
>connect to the AP.  Either way, once connected to the AP, you may be 
>required to go through a "tollgate" to reach the internet.
>
>Oh, many "paid" tollgates have "roaming" priviledges much like 
>cellphones.  If so, there will be a section on the tollgate webpage 
>on how to use your roaming priviledges.  For example, my AT&T DSL 
>account allows me to pay an additional $1.99 a month for wireless 
>hotspot access.  If I go to a place that has a tollgate, that 
>tollgate webpage may have a place for me to sign-in as an AT&T DSL 
>customer.  Once done, I don't have to pay the tollgate charge for 
>internet access.
>
>That's the jist of it.  One more note:  Many hackers are now setting 
>up AP's with the same name as a legimite AP.  For example, let's say 
>"Starbucks" is the AP name.  What a hacker will do is setup an AP 
>nearby also with the name "Starbucks".  Your wireless client will 
>show two different "Starbucks" AP's - it's up to you to determine 
>which is the legit one.  Typically, if you're *in* the Starbucks, 
>the AP with the stronger signal is the legit one.  You get the 
>idea...just be careful.
>
>73,
>
>   - Aaron Hsu, NN6O
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>Sent: Sunday, April 22, 2007 7:07 PM
>Subject: [Ham-Computers] Wireless
>
>I'm planning a driving trip to Alaska with my RV and would like to 
>use my older Dell laptop with XP Home to connect to the Internet 
>using a wireless "connection" at RV parks, etc.  I'm a total 
>beginner when it comes to wireless; my computers at home are 
>connected with cat5 cables using a router and hub.  I would 
>appreciate suggestions regarding what equipment I need 
>(manufacturer-model would be a plus) and info on using this 
>equipment.  I'm leaving in a week or so, and a non-technical RVing 
>friend suggested the Internet.
>Thanks, Jim
>
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